Nine new Dramas: Return to Eden, Underbelly: Squizzy, Gallipoli.

The high-camp 3-part melodrama which aired on TEN in 1983 starred Rebecca Gilling as Stephanie, an heiress who married a young tennis pro, played by James Reyne, but who bumped her off in a savage crocodile attack, in order to nab her fortune and best friend, played by Wendy Hughes. But Stephanie later returned after a bout of plastic surgery to exact her revenge, this time as Tara….

The tale by McElroy Productions was also turned into a 22 part series in 1986 with Peta Toppano and Daniel Abineri.

Nine has announced the remake at a Drama launch in Sydney today.

As tipped by TV Tonight last month, Underbelly will return to Melbourne for its 2013 season, based around the 1915 gangster Squizzy Taylor.

His gunfight death with long-time rival gangster, John Daniel ‘Snowy’ Cutmore was dramatised in Underbelly: Razor, with Taylor’s role played by actor Justin Rosniak.

John Edwards (Beaconsfield, Howzat, Offspring, Tangle) will also deliver a new drama on Gallipoli to mark the 100th Anniversary of the WWI campaign.

i hope they do a better job with the next Underbelly than they did with Razor, i was really looking forward to that one but to me the scripts were fairly weak & so was alot of the acting, with the exception of Danielle Cormack.

I despair of Nine’s drama choices – and judging by the rest of these comments I’m not entirely alone. I want Nine to take a few risks with a range of producers and projects – all they really do is re-commission from John Edwards at Southern Star, Des Monaghan at Screentime and Hal McElroy so there’s an inevitable sameyness about the work – and indeed remakes. There are so many great projects out there and a lot more talented and passionate producers who are locked out. It’s a pity because, as Seven and Ten know, a great drama series can anchor the night week in week out. Nine meet quota obligations under sufference – but it defines a Network brand. Just saying….Am I alone in this?

With Nines’s recent poor track record regarding Aussie drama, I suppose you can’t blame them for rehashing old ideas. But this is too much.
How long til we get updated versions of Taurus Rising, Waterloo Station or Starting Out ?
Also, I think Rebecca Gibney’s character in Eden was Stephanie and Wendy Hughes/Peta Toppano played Jilly.